Delhi government offices will now have photos of Ambedkar, Bhagat Singh instead of politicians: Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal. File Pic

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday announced that every office of the Delhi government will have photographs of Dr BR Ambedkar and freedom fighter Bhagat Singh instead of politicians.

"Today, I announce that at every office of the Delhi government, there will be photos of BR Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. Now we won't put any Chief Minister or politician's photos," Kejriwal said at a program on the sidelines of a Republic Day event where he also hoisted the national flag.

Speaking at the event, Kejriwal said that he is truly inspired by Dr Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. Recalling the struggles of Dr Ambedkar, he said that at a time when there was no internet, Dr Ambedkar had pursued his education from Columbia University and the London School of Economics."A lesson that we learn from his life is to dream big for the country," he said.

Kejriwal also said that it was Dr Ambedkar's dream that every child of the country, irrespective of whether they hail from a poor or a rich family, should get access to quality education."Today we pledge to fulfill BR Ambedkar's dreams of quality education for every kid. We have brought that revolution into the education sector in the last seven years. Melania Trump, former US President Donald Trump's wife also visited Delhi government schools...We got our certificate," the Delhi Chief Minister said.

When the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) formed the government in Delhi in 2015, Kejriwal said that they first increased the education budget to 25 per cent from a mere 5-10 per cent, followed by fixing infrastructure of all schools.

He also said that the Delhi government was focusing on making children good citizens of the country and for that it had started 'Happiness Classes' in which meditation and moral stories have been taken up.

Referring to the Delhi Government's 'Business Blasters' program, Kejriwal said, "We have started entrepreneurship classes. Children are now saying that they don't want to be seeking jobs but to provide them instead. This change in thought is a big development in itself."

"We have also started 'deshbhakti' classes. In Delhi, we have started an education board that has a tie-up with the international education board 'IB'. We are building a teachers' university in Delhi," he added.

Kejriwal further noted that the paths of Bhagat Singh and Dr Ambedkar were different but their dreams were the same. "Both of them had dreamt of the country where there is equality and no discrimination...they dreamt of a revolution. Today, the same revolution is our dream as well," he said.